The Slide, Border Crossing, Corning, NY, and Hershey, PA

Well, after an investigation the slide problem we found that somehow the actuator motor twisted right out of it's mounting bracket that is mounted on the actuator tube.  Wow, lots of torque there!

The two pins were pulled from the actuator rod.

Following some assistance from Hitch-N-Go and Clearstream by the way of manufacturing a new bracket and removing and installing new high strength pins on the actuator we were on the road at minimal cost and were able to keep our current schedule.

We left Tillsonburg on Wednesday morning and crossed at Fort Erie/Buffalo.  We cleared US customs with minimal wait time and no issues.

Next stop, Ferenbraugh Campground just outside Corning, NY.  We arrived ahead of schedule and decided to visit the Corning Museum of Glass in town. During our tour we saw several demonstrations including the abilities and manufacturing process of Fibre Optic Cables, Hot Glass Blowing, Flame working, Glass breaking, and Glass Galleries.

To RVER's, it sometimes seems that a prerequisite of developing an RV campground is to locate it next to or very near to railways tracks.  Well, Ferenbraugh took that concept to the next level, the railway track passes through the campground.  One side of the tracks being open field type of camping and the other being developed in a heavy wooded area,  We chose the open area and were treated to two trains, one around dinner time and the other at about 4:00 AM!  Oh well, turn over and back to sleep.

The next morning (Thursday) we left for Hershey, PA (Thousand Trails Hershey Preserve, Lancaster County, Hershey, PA) arriving there about 3:00 PM, it was time to set up and relax for the rest of the day.

Friday morning we started out early and visited Hershey's Chocolate World Factory and took a tour in a Roller-Coaster type car that showed the chocolate making process and ended with a sample - ah, breakfast snack!  We then walked around the largest chocolate store I have ever seen and planned our purchases after the Trolley Tour of Town of Hershey which explained the history of Milton Hershey, the founder of Hershey's Chocolates.

Back to the chocolate store - yah!!

We had been told about a wonderful Smorgasbord Lunch at Dienner's Country Restaurant about an hour east of Hershey, so off we went.  They were right!!  The meal was not exotic but was wonderfully cooked homestyle basic food (roasted chicken, mashed potatoes etc).   We were really full after the meal :)

Our waitress was a Mennonite from Ohio but lived in Sioux Lookout, Ontario in 1991 to help raise a family where she also met her husband - small world. Great place to eat - very full!!

We have been in many unusually named towns in our travels such as "Come-By-Chance" and "Dildo" in Newfoundland.  We decided to continue that tradition by visiting the towns of "Bird In Hand" and "Intercourse", PA, We drove through Bird In Hand, but stopped in Intercourse to walk around the Kitchen Kettle Village sampling jams, relishes, cheeses and meats, etc. Both were really neat little towns.

Where did "Bird In Hand" get its name?

 Bird-in-Hand probably received its name from the sign on an 18^th century inn.  In the 1700’s many travellers and residents in this area spoke different languages. Early inns often took their names from an image they could paint on their sign that would be recognizable in any language, such as a blue ball, a white horse, or a hand holding a bird.  Later, the communities that grew around these inns often took on the name of their local inn, such as the villages of Blue Ball, White Horse, and Bird-in-Hand. 

And now the burning question; How did the town of Intercourse get its name?

Formerly known as “Cross Keys”, this village was founded in 1754. The name was changed to Intercourse in 1814. There are several explanations concerning the origin of the name of Intercourse, but none can really be substantiated. The first centres around an old race track which existed just east of town along the Old Philadelphia Pike. The entrance to the race course was known as “Entercourse”. Some suggest that “Entercourse” gradually evolved into “Intercourse”.

Another theory concerns two major roads that crossed here: the Old King’s Highway, which ran from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh (now called the Old Philadelphia Pike), and the road from Wilmington, Delaware to Erie, Pennsylvania. The intersection of these two roads was thought to be the basis for the town of “Cross Keys” or, eventually, “Intercourse”.

A final idea comes from the “old english” language which was is use in the early 1800′s.  It refers to the “fellowship” or social interaction and friendship which was so much a part of an agricultural village and culture at that time.  These roots mark the community of faith to this day, and the many evidences of it is experienced by those who care to dig a bit more deeply while visiting this area. Because of the town's unusual name, the sign posts for the town are frequently targeted by thieves.

We closed the day by returning to the campground, not much for supper tonight as we are still full from lunch.

Bound for Maryland and a visit to the U.S. Capitol tomorrow.